Euronews

In Liege a ceremony took place at the Allies’ Memorial, close to where German troops invaded Belgium on August 4, 1914, the event which brought Britain into the war.

People gathered and reflected on the past and thought about the future.

One woman said: “It is quite good to celebrate all the soldiers lives that are dedicated and died in the war.”

Another said: “I think we need to remind the youth that conflicts can erupt at any time and that there are enough wars going on. So, we commemorate the past but also unfortunately think about wherever there is war and conflicts going on today.”

Known as “the war to end all wars,” World War I spread carnage across Europe especially northern France and Belgium it killed 17 million people, both soldiers and civilians between 1914-18.

Red poppies have become a symbol of remembrance since the trench warfare waged in the poppy fields of Belgium’s Flanders region during the war.

Rudolf Herbert, euronews correspondend, reported from Liege: “On the centenary of World War I there are a lot of TV documentaries and newly published books about the conflict. Is there really a good reason for these commemoration ceremonies with a lot of VIPs?

“Yes, there is because these events highlight to everybody that European politicians are aware of the continent’s past and they take responsibility for the present and the future. “